A new, high-resolution surface mass balance map of Antarctica (1979-2010) based on regional atmospheric climate modeling

• Main Authors: Lenaerts, J.T.M., van den Broeke, M.R., van de Berg, W.J., van Meijgaard, E., Kuipers Munneke, P.
• Other Authors: Marine and Atmospheric Research, Sub Dynamics Meteorology
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2012
• Subjects: Snow accumulation; Part 1; Antarctic; Antarctic Peninsula; The Antarctic; West Antarctica; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/242374

A new, high resolution (27 km) surface mass balance (SMB) map of the Antarctic ice sheet is presented, based on output of a regional atmospheric climate model that includes snowdrift physics and is forced by the most recent reanalysis data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), ERA-Interim (1979-2010). The SMB map confirms high accumulation zones in the western Antarctic Peninsula (>1500 mm y(-1)) and coastal West Antarctica (>1000 mm y(-1)), and shows low SMB values in large parts of the interior ice sheet (